Volkswagen’s cash supplies may have dwindled following the ongoing diesel emissions scandal, but that hasn’t stopped the carmaker from investing heavily in its future electric models.

That’s the word out of Germany, with local newspaper Handelsblatt reporting Volkswagen’s plans for a multi-billion euro battery manufacturing facility.

Such a plant would give the German carmaker some ammo to tackle EV giant Tesla.

Tesla’s battery ‘Gigafactory’ (in conjunction with Panasonic - pictured, below) was described by Tesla CEO Elon Musk as a critical part of the success of Tesla’s new ‘people’s car’, the Model 3.

The primary purpose of the Gigafactory is to drive battery production costs down, and Volkswagen is apparently hoping its new plant will do the same.

Unnamed company insiders have also reportedly revealed that Volkswagen would prefer to free itself from a partnership with the likes of Panasonic or Samsung, and a stand-alone facility was the only way to achieve that.

The battery factory would also help to repair Volkswagen’s ‘green’ image, which has taken a battering in some circles following the diesel emissions scandal.

Potential locations for the Volkswagen battery factory are unknown at this stage, but the facility could fast-track the introduction of up to 20 new EV models for the German carmaker once operational.